“Steve” should have been satisfied professionally. After all, he’d made it through law school and was working as an attorney. But he was deeply unhappy. He started missing filing deadlines and he realized that his job was causing him to be anxious and depressed. Mental health care helped his depression, but not his job situation. Steve knew he couldn’t continue like this, but who was going to help him figure out what to do?
Work-Able
Enter a pilot program formulated at the Career Development Center, an affiliate of the Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Pittsburgh, Penn. Based on a Boston University model to help professionals who have experienced mental illness that is causing them to be unemployed or underemployed, Work-Able takes a holistic look at career success.
Although the program is currently only offered in the Steel City, the group is ready and willing to expand their success on a national level. Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Pittsburgh is happy to share more information on establishing a Work-Able program in your community. Please contact Julie Marx, Work-Able coordinator, at 412-422-5627 or jmarx@jfcspgh.org.
Work-Able Coordinator Marx says that lifestyle is a big focus of the program. Aspects of wellness that clients may not have looked at, but which are addressed in counseling, include:
• Housing
• Exercise
• Three meals a day
• Keeping on prescribed medications
• Social support
Clients also work with career development specialists who help with resumes, networking and online job searching, according to Andrea Roberts, Work-Able counselor.
In addition to the counseling, participants are strongly encouraged to attend workshops on a wide variety of topics. A sampling of current and recent offerings include:
• Organizational Strategies – led by an occupational therapist and professional organizer, it covered home, work and cyberspace
• Tai Chi – a master in Tai Chi with a degree in psychology demonstrated how to use this ancient art to reduce anxiety
• Wellness Recovery Action Plan – covered how to put a plan in place before participants need it
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Overview –what employers can and can’t do, and what constitutes “reasonable accommodation” for people with psychiatric disabilities
"There wasn't really a program that addressed the mental health issues of professionals in the workplace," Marx says.
Seventy percent of people with a college degree who also have mental illness earn less than $10 per hour, according to a 2003 survey by the Mental Health Commission Subcommittee on Employment and Income Supports.
Work-Able concentrates on individuals with a college degree who are under the care of a mental health professional. They must be seeking professional employment and demonstrate motivation to work. The program is currently offered free of charge, thanks to a pair of grants.
Marx also notes that participants receive follow-up assistance.
“It’s not considered an endpoint when clients are placed,” she says. “They’re still in touch in person or by phone.”
Out of an initial group of 12 participants in the Work-Able, nine are now working in some capacity. Former attorney Steve is happily employed as the director of a religious school.
If you live in the Pittsburgh area and think you may qualify for the program, contact Andrea Roberts at 412-422-5627 or aroberts@jfcspgh.org.
Located in Pittsburgh, Penn., Jewish Family & Children's Service's psychological, employment and social services include adoption, career services, counseling & consultation, critical/special needs, food pantry, guardianship, older adult services and refugee & immigration services. JF&CS is a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization. Services are provided and referrals are made without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, ancestry, religious creed, disability or age.
